Hi everyone,
I have been busy with a touch of lazy and haven't written to you lately so here's a update on what's been happening. I am happy to inform you that James is drinking milk! His allergy is not affected when I give him boiled, organic whole milk (or homo) milk for you Canadians! I read that there are two proteins that make milk difficult to digest: whey and casein. When milk is boiled is reduces the allergenicity of whey but not casein. The whey must be what James is allergic to because he can tolerate boiled milk as well as foods made with milk, like cheese, pizza, etc. This is great news because now I don't need to pump milk for daycare anymore and because it increases James food options. Now if only I can get him to eat fruit!
Second big news is that James started daycare! He's been attending almost 2 weeks now and he loves it. I was so worried that his transition would be difficult, however on the first day he cried for 5 minutes after I left the room, and didn't cry when I picked him up. The second day he didn't cry at all and went straight to eat breakfast and was fine with me leaving. On pick-up he hopped over to me and took my hand to show me the classroom, then he cried when I picked him up to leave! That was a perfect sign to show that he's happy there. Also these teachers write a daily sheet of his meals, diaper changes, naps, and write about his day. It's so nice being able to know how he did in detail, especially since there is no webcam here. The only con to this daycare is that they don't provide meals, but have an outside caterer that we have to pay in addition to monthly fees, thus this is more expensive than Toronto. However we have a larger and nicer facility that's located on a farm rather than the busy city streets we were used too. I loved my old daycare, but I have fallen in love with this new facility too!
We also flew to Toronto a couple of weekends ago to celebrate a second birthday party! It was so great seeing the old gang and the kiddies. Everyone is doing great and we really enjoyed ourselves. We also visited some friends for brunch and met their puppy, Eli. This was James' first real interaction with a dog. Eli is a dachshund and about a month old. At first James and Eli were scared if each other, but after some time James was petting him and talking to him. It was fun watching the interaction.
We also celebrated Thanksgiving recently. We were invited to my brother's in-laws for dinner which was nice. Their family is big into ping pong and they had a tournament which was fun. My sister-in-law made an amazing turkey and her gravy was a big hit! After eating the huge meal, we headed to my cousin's house to meet up with everyone there. They are into football so were watching the game. Instead I enjoyed catching up with everyone. James feel asleep on the drive over so we put him in his cousin's crib until it was time for her to sleep. He was good and slept on the way home too. We got home really late, but I was still up so I went to the mall for my first Black Friday shopping. It was not really worth it. I just got some clothes for James. I think shopping in Manhattan would have been better, maybe next time. Lol!
While James is in daycare, I've been spending my time cooking, settling in and preparing for Christmas. I am really excited about getting a real tree! We weren't allowed real trees in the condo, nor did we ever put up a fake one since we were never home then. I look forward to starting this Christmas tradition with James!
Lastly my 2 months off of work is coming to an end and I start on Monday. I can't believe how quickly my life has changed. Life is so different here in the suburbs. What's funny is that the driving that I've done this past month is probable more than I've ever done in my lifetime before!
Hope you have a safe and happy holiday!
Happy reading!
Rachel
November 29, 2012
November 6, 2012
How Did This Happen? :(
My day started off well despite James waking up at 5:30. I brought him into bed with me and he stayed and played a bit until around 7:30ish. We brushed our teeth, changed his clothes and diaper and went down for breakfast. Afterwards James played and we had an early lunch. Adit and I were watching Revolution as we had lunch and since James was in the room he didn't nap as scheduled. Instead he fell asleep around 1:30-3:30. He initially work up after an hour and I napped with him for the second hour. I just love cuddling with him. I'm trying to encourage him to ask for "Milky", but instead he points and then I'll ask him if he wants milky and he says "yes". James also says no, it's the cutest thing because of the way he says it.
I gave James a snack after he woke up and then got him dressed to go for a drive to get groceries. Adit, James and I went to Costco. As usual we picked up some things that weren't needed. Lol! On the way out there was a huge line to get the receipts checked and the wind was blowing in at us, so I figured it would make more sense to take James to the car. I took the car keys from Adit and headed to the car. James took the keys from me and I placed him in the seat. Since he was wearing his heavy winter jacket I closed the door and started walking to the other side to get in and undress him. Before I could get to the other door I heard the car lock! I ran to the door and pulled it, but it was locked. I checked in at James and he was sitting there with the keys in his hands playing. I tried all the car doors, but no use, everything was locked! My heart sank! I quickly checked my purse as I usually have my keys, but guess what, no keys!
By this time Adit was walking up and I yelled to him that I locked James in the car because i let him have the keys. He was calm and we said we need to get home to get my keys. The couple parked next to us could see the panic and heard what happened. They offered to take Adit to get the keys and bring him back. They took off and I stayed at the window asking James to "press the button". He did press the buttons, just not the one we needed. He kept hitting the lock, then the panic. The alarm went off a few times, but he was pretty calm. I was loosing my mind on how this happened and how he was doing. I fed him at Costco and I knew he was warm since he was in his coat. I was just worried that he'd fall out of the seat and hurt himself as he wasn't buckled in. I tried my best to keep him calm by playing peek-a-boo and singing his favorite songs. As Adit was headed back James started to have a meltdown. He wanted out of the seat. He kept trying to hand me the keys through the glass, but I couldn't take it. Then he started crying and slouching in the seat. He was crying and it was breaking my heart. I knew Adit would be there, but I didn't want him to fall. He has his feet facing me and was kicking the glass, that was a safe position so he wouldn't fall. Then he realized he could turn the other way and started swinging his body there. I got so nervous and was pounding on the glass to get his attention and calling him. Thankfully I saw the couple drive up and Adit unlocked the car. I quickly opened the door and grabbed James in my arms. I was so relieved to hold him. He was still crying as he was tired and probably was scared through that ordeal too. I took him to the back seat with me and nursed him. After a couple minutes he calmed down and let me put him in the car seat. I continued nursing while we drove home and he was fine.
When we parked I saw a big smile on his face and he said "up, up". I took him out and got him ready for bed. I held him really tight as I rocked him to sleep and kissed him goodnight before putting him in his crib. I am so relieved that nothing bad happened. I've learned my lesson and I'm never giving a kid any automatic keys again! My heart can't undergo that stress again.
Hope no one else has to experience this and can maybe learn from my account.
Happy reading!
Rachel
I gave James a snack after he woke up and then got him dressed to go for a drive to get groceries. Adit, James and I went to Costco. As usual we picked up some things that weren't needed. Lol! On the way out there was a huge line to get the receipts checked and the wind was blowing in at us, so I figured it would make more sense to take James to the car. I took the car keys from Adit and headed to the car. James took the keys from me and I placed him in the seat. Since he was wearing his heavy winter jacket I closed the door and started walking to the other side to get in and undress him. Before I could get to the other door I heard the car lock! I ran to the door and pulled it, but it was locked. I checked in at James and he was sitting there with the keys in his hands playing. I tried all the car doors, but no use, everything was locked! My heart sank! I quickly checked my purse as I usually have my keys, but guess what, no keys!
By this time Adit was walking up and I yelled to him that I locked James in the car because i let him have the keys. He was calm and we said we need to get home to get my keys. The couple parked next to us could see the panic and heard what happened. They offered to take Adit to get the keys and bring him back. They took off and I stayed at the window asking James to "press the button". He did press the buttons, just not the one we needed. He kept hitting the lock, then the panic. The alarm went off a few times, but he was pretty calm. I was loosing my mind on how this happened and how he was doing. I fed him at Costco and I knew he was warm since he was in his coat. I was just worried that he'd fall out of the seat and hurt himself as he wasn't buckled in. I tried my best to keep him calm by playing peek-a-boo and singing his favorite songs. As Adit was headed back James started to have a meltdown. He wanted out of the seat. He kept trying to hand me the keys through the glass, but I couldn't take it. Then he started crying and slouching in the seat. He was crying and it was breaking my heart. I knew Adit would be there, but I didn't want him to fall. He has his feet facing me and was kicking the glass, that was a safe position so he wouldn't fall. Then he realized he could turn the other way and started swinging his body there. I got so nervous and was pounding on the glass to get his attention and calling him. Thankfully I saw the couple drive up and Adit unlocked the car. I quickly opened the door and grabbed James in my arms. I was so relieved to hold him. He was still crying as he was tired and probably was scared through that ordeal too. I took him to the back seat with me and nursed him. After a couple minutes he calmed down and let me put him in the car seat. I continued nursing while we drove home and he was fine.
When we parked I saw a big smile on his face and he said "up, up". I took him out and got him ready for bed. I held him really tight as I rocked him to sleep and kissed him goodnight before putting him in his crib. I am so relieved that nothing bad happened. I've learned my lesson and I'm never giving a kid any automatic keys again! My heart can't undergo that stress again.
Hope no one else has to experience this and can maybe learn from my account.
Happy reading!
Rachel
November 2, 2012
Dairy Allergy? What Dairy Allergy? :)
For those of you tuning in recently, James has a dairy allergy that we discovered since he was about 10 months old. That was the week we introduced yogurt and he introduced us to projectile vomiting! It's amazing how quickly he reacted, it barely hit his tongue when he started dry heaving, then immediately vomited.
We also tried giving him regular cow's milk, goat's milk, cheese, etc. recently we tried shredded mozzarella cheese and he was able to digest that without any allergic reactions. Besides vomiting, he also develops red bumps on his chin. This morning I made him some infant cereal with half boiled milk and water as the liquid. He had a bite but wasn't interested. He was watching his cousins eat eggs so he wanted that too. So I topped it with some Gouda cheese and that also was digested with no issues. I think I'm fairly confident offering him cheese, it's just milk that concerns me.
I am still nursing my 19.5 month old son! This means that I'd pump 3 times a day to obtain 4-5 oz if I'm lucky. We supplement with some chocolate pediasure, but I'd much prefer to offer him cow's milk. Since I'm at my aunt's house with my mom we decided to try boiled organic milk. I gave him about 1/4 of a teaspoon yesterday and there was no reaction. I cheered a small victory in my heart, and a sigh of relief hoping my pumping days will be numbered.
Today we gave him about a full tablespoon of milk and he had the red bump reaction on his chin. I still felt satisfied that he'll be ok. I think that I'll end up mixing 1/2 my milk and whole milk and keep increasing the whole milk as we go.
So there is light at the end of the tunnel! I just couldn't wait to share his progress with you all!
Happy reading!
Rachel
We also tried giving him regular cow's milk, goat's milk, cheese, etc. recently we tried shredded mozzarella cheese and he was able to digest that without any allergic reactions. Besides vomiting, he also develops red bumps on his chin. This morning I made him some infant cereal with half boiled milk and water as the liquid. He had a bite but wasn't interested. He was watching his cousins eat eggs so he wanted that too. So I topped it with some Gouda cheese and that also was digested with no issues. I think I'm fairly confident offering him cheese, it's just milk that concerns me.
I am still nursing my 19.5 month old son! This means that I'd pump 3 times a day to obtain 4-5 oz if I'm lucky. We supplement with some chocolate pediasure, but I'd much prefer to offer him cow's milk. Since I'm at my aunt's house with my mom we decided to try boiled organic milk. I gave him about 1/4 of a teaspoon yesterday and there was no reaction. I cheered a small victory in my heart, and a sigh of relief hoping my pumping days will be numbered.
Today we gave him about a full tablespoon of milk and he had the red bump reaction on his chin. I still felt satisfied that he'll be ok. I think that I'll end up mixing 1/2 my milk and whole milk and keep increasing the whole milk as we go.
So there is light at the end of the tunnel! I just couldn't wait to share his progress with you all!
Happy reading!
Rachel
November 1, 2012
Oh Sandy!
The movers arrived bright and early at 8:00 am as promised and delivered everything without an issues. Then came the tedious job of unpacking. Luckily we were accompanied by by mom, brother and his wife. Initially we thought that my mom would watch James and the 4 of us would unpack. Instead the boys went to get groceries since we had no food and my sister-in-law (SIL) watched James as my mom and I tackled the kitchen. This worked out really well and once the boys returned they watched James as my SIL joined us in the kitchen. We made so much headway that we nearly finished unpacking that area.
The next day we continued unpacking and we had the news playing in the background urging everyone to exercise caution about Hurricane Sandy. As typical NYers we didn't feel that there would be any major issues as it was a cat 1 and Adit and I endured a higher cat in Halifax from hurricane Juan. Nevertheless we had James and my mom with us so we didn't want to take any chances so we stocked up on some food and water.
On Monday I had grand plans of setting up James room. His crib and change table were there, but everything else was in boxes. It was a huge task, but my mom and I did most of it and we finished about an hour before the power went out. Although I knew the storm was coming, we heard reports that it would be around 6:30, however our power was out at 4:30. We felt totally ripped off. Lol!
We still had some daylight, running water, and a working gas stove so we went along with our day thinking that the power would return soon. At around 6:30 we realized that it wasn't coming back as the rain and wind both picked up. We also felt the cold creep in. We saw the once vertical rain drops change to horizontal and the large stationary trees sway vigorously back and forth. We were worried that a tree would fall in on us so we decided to all sleep downstairs in case we had to leave suddenly. As an additional precaution I packed an overnight bag for James, and had our shoes and coats handy for a quick get away. We are staying in a town home so I was paranoid of a fire that could quickly spread from one home to another. I guess it's my underwriting background, however I rather be prepared.
So it was around 9pm and we were bored out of our minds. James was asleep so we decided to head to bed too in hopes we'd sleep through this storm. I had a difficult time as it was freezing and I couldn't stop watching the trees for fear they might hit us or look at the amazing blue sky lit up by lightening. My fears were heightened when we heard some cracking and booms from falling trees. I tossed and turned all night as sleeping on the floor is uncomfortable and I wanted to make sure James was warm. After a few hours the winds and rain subsided and I was able to sleep until about 6 am.
When we woke up we looked at the trees in the yard and saw there were about 3 down. The front wasn't bad as there aren't many trees there. Adit decided to take a drive to survey the damage. He said that there were a lot of trees down and power was out in most of the area. As it was cold at home and we only had a few candles so we decided it was time to jump ship and head to Manhattan.
We called my brother who said that they didn't lose power so we assumed that my mom's apartment didn't either. We needed to find a way in where the roads weren't flooded, Adit charted a route through the cleared roadways which took us through the Lincoln Tunnel. We made it though with no issues and even found parking a free parking spot on my mom's street!
After hanging out a few hours, we decided to head to my Aunt's house in Queens since they also had power too and it would be a nice opportunity to see my cousins and their kids. James was in pure bliss and we have been here since Tuesday afternoon awaiting the power to return. Thankfully I'm a neurotic mom and packed about 5 changes of clothes for myself and James in our overnight bag! Lol!
Well I'll give you an update on our power situation when there's news!
Happy reading!
Rachel
The next day we continued unpacking and we had the news playing in the background urging everyone to exercise caution about Hurricane Sandy. As typical NYers we didn't feel that there would be any major issues as it was a cat 1 and Adit and I endured a higher cat in Halifax from hurricane Juan. Nevertheless we had James and my mom with us so we didn't want to take any chances so we stocked up on some food and water.
On Monday I had grand plans of setting up James room. His crib and change table were there, but everything else was in boxes. It was a huge task, but my mom and I did most of it and we finished about an hour before the power went out. Although I knew the storm was coming, we heard reports that it would be around 6:30, however our power was out at 4:30. We felt totally ripped off. Lol!
We still had some daylight, running water, and a working gas stove so we went along with our day thinking that the power would return soon. At around 6:30 we realized that it wasn't coming back as the rain and wind both picked up. We also felt the cold creep in. We saw the once vertical rain drops change to horizontal and the large stationary trees sway vigorously back and forth. We were worried that a tree would fall in on us so we decided to all sleep downstairs in case we had to leave suddenly. As an additional precaution I packed an overnight bag for James, and had our shoes and coats handy for a quick get away. We are staying in a town home so I was paranoid of a fire that could quickly spread from one home to another. I guess it's my underwriting background, however I rather be prepared.
So it was around 9pm and we were bored out of our minds. James was asleep so we decided to head to bed too in hopes we'd sleep through this storm. I had a difficult time as it was freezing and I couldn't stop watching the trees for fear they might hit us or look at the amazing blue sky lit up by lightening. My fears were heightened when we heard some cracking and booms from falling trees. I tossed and turned all night as sleeping on the floor is uncomfortable and I wanted to make sure James was warm. After a few hours the winds and rain subsided and I was able to sleep until about 6 am.
When we woke up we looked at the trees in the yard and saw there were about 3 down. The front wasn't bad as there aren't many trees there. Adit decided to take a drive to survey the damage. He said that there were a lot of trees down and power was out in most of the area. As it was cold at home and we only had a few candles so we decided it was time to jump ship and head to Manhattan.
We called my brother who said that they didn't lose power so we assumed that my mom's apartment didn't either. We needed to find a way in where the roads weren't flooded, Adit charted a route through the cleared roadways which took us through the Lincoln Tunnel. We made it though with no issues and even found parking a free parking spot on my mom's street!
After hanging out a few hours, we decided to head to my Aunt's house in Queens since they also had power too and it would be a nice opportunity to see my cousins and their kids. James was in pure bliss and we have been here since Tuesday afternoon awaiting the power to return. Thankfully I'm a neurotic mom and packed about 5 changes of clothes for myself and James in our overnight bag! Lol!
Well I'll give you an update on our power situation when there's news!
Happy reading!
Rachel
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